In conventional wireless access networks, mobile devices operate in either a contention-based media access control (MAC) transmission mode or a contention-free MAC transmission mode. When operating in the contention-based MAC transmission mode, the mobile device communicates all traffic in accordance with a contention-based access technique. Likewise, when operating in the contention-free MAC transmission mode, the mobile device communicates all traffic using scheduling-based access. Each MAC transmission mode has its advantages and disadvantages. For instance, scheduling-based access often provides higher quality of service (QoS) than contention-based access, while contention-based access typically achieves lower latency times, particularly for small payload traffic.
As mobile device capability increases, it is likely that users may want to communicate diverse traffic types simultaneously. For instance, a user may want to communicate a first traffic flow (e.g., a high QoS traffic flow) using scheduling-based access at the same time as a second traffic flow (e.g., latency-intolerant/low-capacity data flow) using contention-based access. Presently, the mobile station would need to communicate both traffic flows using the same MAC transmission technique, depending on which MAC transmission mode the UE was operating in. Hence, new mechanisms for efficiently communicating diverse traffic types are desired.